Our Emergency Department is very busy
Our Emergency Department is currently very busy and if you do not have an emergency or life-threatening condition, you may be redirected to other healthcare services. These include NHS 111, our Urgent Treatment Centres at the Dartmoor Building and the Cumberland Centre, and our Minor Injury Units at Kingsbridge and Tavistock. You may also be advised to use local pharmacies or to contact your GP.
Our colleagues are working hard to prioritise patients based on their clinical need and move patients to the right place for them as soon as possible.
If you have a very serious or life-threatening emergency, we are here for you, but otherwise, if you need urgent care, we ask you please to call NHS 111 or use NHS 111 online.
What can I do to help?
- If you have an urgent medical problem that isn’t an emergency contact NHS 111 first by phone or online
- Please use our Emergency Department if you have a life-threatening emergency. Please be aware that our service, like the wider NHS and local health and care system, is very busy.
- The Urgent Treatment Centres in the Dartmoor Building and at the Cumberland Centre in Devonport is open every day to treat you if you have an injury which isn’t life-threatening but requires urgent treatment. An explainer video about what can and can’t be treated at an Urgent Treatment Centre is available to watch.
- For emergency dental care, contact your usual dentist, or contact NHS 111 by phone or online and you will be provided with details of your local out of hours service
- If you have a friend or family member in hospital please help them to come home as soon as they are ready. Talk to the ward staff about the support available to help them be discharged, including one off grants.
- If you have any symptoms of a winter bug such as flu or norovirus please stay at home, particularly avoid people who are more vulnerable such as hospital patients or care home residents.
- If you don’t have symptoms of an infectious bug and you have an appointment do please attend unless you are contacted.
For further information on how you can stay well this winter, visit https://www.plymouthhospitals.nhs.uk/stay-well/.
